Setting Up Google Analytics for Your Website

Google Analytics is an essential tool for tracking and understanding website traffic, user behavior, and conversions. Follow the steps below to set up Google Analytics for your website, generate the necessary tags, and integrate them into your site.

Step 1: Set Up Google Analytics

Before you can generate the Google Tag, you need to set up Google Analytics on your website.

1. Sign in to Google Analytics: Visit Google Analytics and sign in with your Google account.
2. Create or Select a Property: Once logged in, click on the Admin button located at the bottom left of the page.
3. Create a Property: If you haven’t created a property for your website yet, click on Create Property under the Property column and follow the prompts to set up your new property.
4. Select Your Property: If you already have a property, simply select it from the Property column at the top.

For more detailed steps on creating or setting up a new property, please refer to Google's official guide.

Step 2: Generate Google Tag

Once you have set up your Google Analytics property, you will need to generate the Google Tag, which is used to track your website data.

1. Navigate to Data Streams: In the Admin panel, under the Property column, click on Data Streams > Web.

2. Select Your Website’s Data Stream: Click on the data stream that corresponds to your website.

3. View Tag Instructions: Scroll down to the Google tag section and click View tag instructions.

4. Select Install Manually: On the installation instructions page, choose the option to Install manually.

5. Copy the Google Tag: You will see a JavaScript snippet beginning with:

    

   <!-- Google tag (gtag.js) -->


   And ending with:

    

   </script>


   This is your Google tag. Copy the entire code, as you will need it to link with your website.

Step 3: Add the Google Analytics Script to Your Website

Now that you have the Google Tag, you’ll need to add it to your website’s CMS (Content Management System) to start tracking data.

1. Login to Your CMS: Access the CMS or admin panel of your website.

2. Navigate to Integrated Apps: Go to Integrated Apps > Google > Analytics.

3. Paste the Analytics Script Link:

   • In the field labeled Analytics Script Link, paste the portion of the Google Tag code you copied earlier. This will be the section of the script that starts with <!-- Google tag (gtag.js) --> and ends with </script>.

   Example:

    

   <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=YOUR_TRACKING_ID"></script>


Step 4: Add the Config Value to Your Website

In addition to the Analytics Script, you'll also need to add the Config Value from the Google Tag.

1. Return to the Google Tag: Go back to the Google Tag code you copied in Step 2. Find the section of the tag that begins with gtag('config', 'YOUR_TRACKING_ID');.

2. Copy the Config Value: Copy this entire line, including the quotation marks and tracking ID.

   Example:

    

   gtag('config', 'YOUR_TRACKING_ID');


3. Paste the Config Value:

   • In your CMS, navigate to Integrated Apps > Google > Analytics.
   • In the field labeled Config Value, paste the config code you copied from the Google Tag.

Step 5: Save and Verify

1. Save Your Changes: Once both the Analytics Script Link and Config Value are pasted into their respective fields, be sure to save your changes.
2. Verify Installation: You can verify that Google Analytics is properly installed on your website by visiting the Real-time section of your Google Analytics dashboard. If data starts appearing there, your setup was successful.

Conclusion

By following these steps, you will successfully set up Google Analytics on your website and begin tracking valuable data. Regularly monitor your website's performance through the Google Analytics dashboard to gain insights into user behavior, traffic sources, and conversion rates.